Classroom Technology in the early '80's

The only technology I remember regularly being used in my middle school classroom was the overhead projector. Teachers would write notes or work out math problems on a clear sheet of plastic with erasable colored pens. When the plastic sheet was placed on the bright base of the machine, the information would be projected to the screen in front of the room . Even with this low level technology, there were times the light bulb had burned out and the teacher had to scramble to adjust the lesson plan. Most of my teachers used chalk and a chalk board for communicating information.

I graduated with my undergraduate degree in 1990 and never needed any technology except for a typewriter and a basic calculator to complete my education. I did not get a personal computer until around 1998. My husband was in the military and  getting ready to deploy to another part of the world. Getting connected to the internet and setting up an e-mail account made it possible for us to communicate on a daily basis. Before the internet and e-mail communication, military personnel and their family would have to go days or weeks between phone calls or letters. Regular communication made the long deployments much more tolerable. Now with facebook and twitter, I have almost instant communication with most of the important people in my life. It has made me feel more connected and less isolated even when I have not seen someone for along time in person.

Another way computers and the internet in particular has changed my life is through the easy access to medical information. There have been innumerable times I have had a concern about some kind of symptom I was experiencing or my children were experiencing. I just start researching it on the internet. It has saved me hours of time trying to get to a doctor and probably lots of money. By researching things on the internet, I can see if I really need to see a doctor or if there is a home remedy, I can use. Of course, you have to use common sense and care, when dealing with medical issues. But, I know this is one way computers have changed my life for the better. One time in particular, I began having foot pain when I would run. After some research I realized what most likely was the problem and started doing some stretches that were suggested. The pain cleared up. Some people end up needing surgery for this problem. I really believe, because I was able to get the information I needed quickly and start stretching correctly, I avoided that.

The third way computers have changed my life is by giving me the opportunity to further my formal education. When I found out there was an online program that would allow me to become the teacher I always wanted to be, I was thrilled. As a full-time employee and mother of 4, I don't think there is any way I could attend graduate school in the traditional way. Online classes make it possible to juggle all my responsibilities and still prepare for my future. 

Computers have certainly changed my life and the entire world. They are a remarkable and powerful tool that can keep us all communicating, give us the information we need, and prepare us for a bright future.

I'm finding it kind of interesting that I'll be learning to create a PREZI soon. My 8th grade son had to do one for his literature class this week. I watched him do it for a while and was amazed at how easy it was for him. Technology seems to be intuitive for the young. I hope the more I use it the easier it will get. There really are some amazing tools out there.

I spent a couple hours working on my "Table" project due in a couple weeks. It took me quite a while to figure out how to make the table in Microsoft word. The best help I got came from watching a handful of youtube videos. Finally, I think I got it all looking right. The website to find the NETS standards was rather difficult to use also. After clicking around, getting nowhere, for quite a while, I finally found the NETS standards in some obscure download pdf file. Did I mention technology is not easy for me? You can probably tell. I'm working on it.

This is my very first blog

I am not one of those people who seem to understand technology intuitively. This will be a challenging course for me. I know it is very important to be good with technology to have access to the tools I will need to be the best teacher I can possibly be. So I am looking forward to everything I will learn in this course. It is all very new to me. I have never been part of a discussion board or published a blog before. Having to do these things is pushing me beyond the limits of where I've been comfortable. It is good for me to do this. I hope to meet many of you who are on this journey of becoming technologically literate. It will be good to know that I am not alone.